Apparatus for feeding longitudinal heterogenous goods

Abstract

An apparatus for feeding long tree parts piled with approximate parallelism to a processing machine having an infeed spaced from the pile for receiving the parts endwise, has an arm which is positioned at a level above the pile and so as to span the space from the pile to the machine when positioned in alignment with the parts, this arm carrying a traveling series of grapples running longitudinally along the arm, actuating devices causing the grapples to clamp the parts sequentially and pull them endwise to the infeed of the machine.

What I claim is: 
     
       1. An apparatus for feeding elongated parts piled with at least approximate parallelism, to a process machine having an infeed spaced from an end of the pile of parts and adapted to receive the parts endwise, said apparatus comprising an arm adapted to be positioned at a level above said pile and so as to span the space from the pile to the machine when positioned at least approximately in alignment with said parts, said arm having a pivoted inner end adjacent to said infeed and a vertically swinging outer end, an endless traveling series of interspaced grapples carried by said arm through a span running longitudinally under the arm from its outer end to its inner end, actuating means for causing the grapples to sequentially clamp one or more of said parts when over said pile so as to engage and pull the part or parts endwise to said infeed, means for causing the grapples to release the part or parts at said infeed, and means for causing said travelling series of grapples to momentarily travel in an upward direction relative to said arm substantially as soon as they are caused to clamp and to thereafter travel more directly towards said infeed. 
     
     
       2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which said arm comprises inner and outer portions adapted to move longitudinally relative to each other so as to permit the outer end of the outer portion to be positioned at differing locations along the length of said series of grapples running over said outer end. 
     
     
       3. The apparatus of claim 2 in which said grapples are carried by an endless chain running lengthwise around said inner and outer portions of said arm, and the chain has means for maintaining it under tension as said portions relatively move longitudinally. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus of claim 1 in which a catching screen is positioned in front of the infeed of said machine and is arranged so as to catch and hold any of said parts dropped by any one grapple before arriving at said infeed, in the path of succeeding parts being fed by succeeding grapples so as to be thereby pushed into the infeed. 
     
     
       5. The apparatus of claim 1 having means in front of said infeed and in the travel path of the part or parts clamped and pulled by said clamps, for agitating the part or parts so as to dislodge any loose contamination carried thereby. 
     
     
       6. The apparatus of claim 1 in which said clamps have resilient closing means for causing them to clamp said parts so as to permit the parts to pull free from the clamps if their lifting is abnormally impeded. 
     
     
       7. The apparatus of claim 6 in which means are provided for controlling downward swinging of said arm while permitting free upward swinging of the arm by lifting force caused by said grapples engaging said pile of parts.